Social media do-overs

I'm only human. Born to make mistakes. That may be how the song goes, but you have to avoid messing up on social media.

I've spent countless hours explaining why being careful is so important, how the delete button doesn't give you carte blanche to tweet and share anything without fear or blame.

That advice is still true, despite what's going on in California. Effective Jan. 1, 2015, a new law there known as the "eraser button" law will force social media and search engine companies to allow minors to delete their online histories and start over. Yep, start over. Why? Because apparently you make mistakes when you are young and you should have the right to try again to ensure your employment isn't affected by early bad decisions.

I could write a whole column on why I think this is one of the worst ideas I've ever heard. But for now, here are five tips to make sure you never need a social media get-out-of-jail-free card.

Watch your mouth. Curse word this, curse word that ... would you talk to your grandma that way? Of course not. No matter how old you are or what you are using social media for, be respectful to everyone. Think before you hit post. That goes for Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and everywhere.

That brings us to the grandma test. I coined this phrase back in 2010 as a way of making sure what you are sharing is acceptable. Look at what you are about to post on social media and ask yourself if it's something you would share with your grandma. If the answer is no, don't post it. Why take the chance?

Nothing risque. You shouldn't have left your house in those shorts in the first place, so for the love of all that's good please don't share photos of you in them on Facebook and Instagram. And don't hashtag them #booty. I'm not saying to dress in your Sunday best before going online, but seriously. Common sense.

Social media is not texting. What you say on social networks doesn't always stay on social networks. Screengrabs can be captured. Share buttons are everywhere. Don't mistake using social media for sending a text message — many often do.

Don't suck. If you work for a brand and represent that brand on social media, represent that brand all the time. Don't be one way on one account and the opposite on another when the clock strikes 5:01. That means the grandma test applies all the time. What you do on social media follows you, and if you are careless it will come back to hurt you.

So to recap: No #booty hashtags. Love your grandma. Don't suck on social media. Unless you have access to a time machine and move to California, you get one shot.

What questions do you have about social media? Tweet them to @scottkleinberg. He might select yours for use in a future column.